War is a dreadful thing. If we find glory in it, it’s because we admire soldiers for their bravery, prowess, and sacrifice. I’ve known soldiers who march in parades on Memorial Day or the Fourth of July and are proud of their service, exactly as on Saint Crispian’s Day at Agincourt, Henry V (according to the Bard) promised his soldiers:
He that shall live this day, and see old age,
Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbours,
And say ‘To-morrow is Saint Crispian:’
Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars.
And say ‘These wounds I had on Crispin’s day.’
Old men forget: yet all shall be forgot,
But he’ll remember with advantages
What feats he did that day: then shall our names,
Familiar in his mouth as household words. . .
Be in their flowing cups freshly remember’d.
But I have also known soldiers and Marines who, though they have love and the fondest memories of the “band of brothers” with whom they served, never march, or wear their ribbons and medals, or even a baseball cap that bears a unit insignia. And they do not “talk about the war.” My father (WWII) and my older son (Iraq) are like that, although both were officers who came late to war and were spared the hell of D-Day or the 2nd Battle of Fallujah.
We must think of our Lord’s words: “And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet.” (Matthew 24:6) He further illuminates (7-8): “For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs.”
America is not at war in Venezuela, or against Denmark in Greenland, but there’s an eerie feeling in the air of looming conflicts and serial escalations. President Trump has said (for now) that he won’t send expeditionary forces to Greenland, but if he did, would President Putin pour even greater forces into Ukraine? Would President Xi invade Taiwan? They’d like to, and such incursions by the U.S. might embolden them – and morally blunt our objections.
One may doubt that Mette Frederiksen, Denmark’s Prime Minister, would deploy Danish armed forces to Greenland to face a U.S. deployment. Indeed, she might be foolish to do so, even if other European nations joined in. But these are our friends.
A frequently stated reason for America’s involvement in Vietnam was the Domino Theory: If we didn’t stop the communist takeover there, the Red Menace would spread throughout the region. Well, America failed, and the dominoes fell, although, except in Cambodia, the consequences were not catastrophic. And just as happened after World War II, when our enemies (Germany, Japan, and Italy) quickly became post-war allies, we have formed alliances (less robust, perhaps) in Southeast Asia.
These current war scenarios involving the U.S., the former USSR, and Communist China seem unlikely to satisfy just-war criteria, whereas the seizure of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro, whose regime was running a narco-terrorist operation directly against the United States, does, I think – although only if any “occupation” ends quickly.
If you look at a map, you may think Greenland is closer to the U.S. than to Denmark (it’s not – don’t let the projection map fool you), and you may note that Denmark is in the Eastern Hemisphere, Greenland in the Western. Geography is a compelling strategic and geopolitical reality, but not a casus belli.
The population of the State of New York is declining, especially if you subtract the number of illegal immigrants. It may fall further if NYC’s socialist mayor’s policies create emigrants seeking tax relief. And if Gov. Kathy Hochul were aggrieved by this, she might order National Guard troops into New Jersey and Connecticut to boost the Empire State’s position vis-à-vis geography, population, and. . .tax revenue.
If the U.S. needs more and better northern and eastern defenses against attack, why not point our sights at Canada? It’s an even larger country than the U.S. in square miles! Talk about security! And the Canadians “stand on guard”! And think of the effect on the U.S. deficit of taxing another 41.5 million people!
[Note to readers: I’m joking.]
The point here, if I can get to it, is that we ought to be doing things to avoid conflict, not stoke it. Paul McCartney did a song, “Give Ireland Back to the Irish,” in 1972 after the events of Bloody Sunday, basically a plea to 10 Downing Street to get troops out of Ulster and to stop killing Catholics. (Twenty-six unarmed people were shot and killed, and many others were wounded – all of them Catholic.)
Trump, Putin, and Maduro (I leave Xi off the list because he’s formally an atheist) need to recall Matthew 5:9: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” Speaking last August about his efforts to achieve peace in Ukraine, Mr. Trump expressed some personal worry: “I want to try and get to heaven, if possible. I’m hearing I’m not doing well. I am really at the bottom of the totem pole. But if I can get to heaven, this [peacemaking] will be one of the reasons.” He even doubled down in October: “I don’t think there’s anything that’s going to get me into heaven. . . .I think I’m not maybe heaven bound.”
That need not be the case, Mr. President. But your designs on Greenland could be sliding you closer to the abyss. Let the Greenlanders be Greenlanders – or Danish or whatever. They are a sovereign people who must be the agents of their own destiny, just as you and I.
Your version of the Monroe Doctrine, even as a negotiating tactic, seems more like Earl’s than James’. Earl the Pearl Monroe, the former NY Knicks great, used to say, “The thing is, I don’t know what I’m going to do with the ball, and if I don’t know, I’m quite sure the guy guarding me doesn’t know either.”
[Note to readers: I’m not joking.]
